NBA Pro Says League of Legends Players Are More Toxic Than NBA Players

NBA player Gordon Hayward voiced his opinion on toxicity in League of Legends recently by saying [...]

By Tanner Dedmon

NBA player Gordon Hayward voiced his opinion on toxicity in League of Legends recently by saying League players are way more toxic than the pros in the NBA. Hayward, a current Boston Celtics player, was streaming League when a viewer asked him if he thought it was people who played Riot Games' hit game or NBA players who were more toxic. The player responded by saying "100,000 percent League players," but as League players themselves and others involved with the game have pointed out, the answer isn't exactly a fair one-to-one comparison even if it is an entertaining response.

Hayward responded to the viewer's question in the clip below where he was asked at the beginning whether it was League players or NBA pros who were more toxic. His response came almost immediately afterward where he said it was "definitely League players."

Adapting a few examples of things players would hear in League matches to what those situations would look like during an NBA game, he joked about what teammates and others would say if players messed up during their basketball games. He joked about teammates calling each other "best three point shooter NA" which plays off the "best [position] NA" flame you'll hear pretty often from teammates in League matches. Players also love to type in All Chat about the difference between one team's player and their counterpart on the other team, so he joked about what that might sound like in a professional basketball game.

But as others have pointed out, the comparison isn't exactly an apt one. People responding online said that of course general League players would be more toxic seeing how NBA players, by definition, are supposed to be professionals. Marc "Tryndamere" Merrill, the co-founder of Riot Games and co-creator of League, said a more accurate comparison would be between League of Legends Championship Series pros and NBA players. Both are at the top professional level of their respective games and would therefore be a more accurate comparison.

League players recently performed their own survey of what types of players were the most toxic and found that certain positions tend to be more toxic than others among other interesting details.

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